[lordsegan]

I have read tons of reviews that warn about Grado comfort (or lack thereof). I wear glasses, so comfort is pretty critical for me.

So, can someone direct me to something that sounds a lot like a Grado SR80 (or better, but with a Gradoish sound) but is super comfortable?

Thanks!

Bonus points if it can be easily moded to balanced operation.

 

[SanJoseCanJunkie]

Everyone is different. Have you tried the sr80i's? They won't necessarily be uncomfortable, and if they are, there are different pads you can try, like the Sennheiser 414 pad mod, which I found to be acceptably comfortable on the MS1's.

BTW, I often wear glasses at home when listening to headphones, and for me they don't make my RS1i's any more uncomfortable than with contacts in. They are bowl pads, but with flat pads (more like the sr80's) they are more comfortable than the bowls.

 

[defrew]

Try the sennheiser pads. makes them 3x more comfortable.

 

[jjinh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by defrew /img/forum/go_quote.gif Try the sennheiser pads. makes them 3x more comfortable.

+1, that's what I do with my grados

 

[Ham Sandwich]

Which part of the Grado sound are you most after?

There is the part of the Grado sound that is amazing with acoustic guitar style music like Rodrigo y Gabriela or Skip, Hop & Wobble and similar bluegrass or some jazz.

Then there is the part of the Grado sound that is forward and aggressive with rock while giving the midrange love.

Denon D2000 can give you the first part but not the second. You can EQ it to get less recessed midrange but you still aren't going to get the forward and aggressive Grado sound. The Denon cables have 4 wires and can be converted to balanced.

 

[stang]

You could get the Sennheiser pads and do the quarter mod and also buy a Beyerdynamic headband for it.

 

[lordsegan]

anyone else?

 

[fjrabon]

the sennheiser HD595 is kind of grado sounding and is super comfortable.

 

[Sophonax]

Grados definitely aren't the most comfortable headphones, but they're not too bad if you get used to them. In order for me to enjoy my SR60is, I had to build up a tolerance to the Grado "comfort". At first I couldn't wear them much beyond 30 minutes without them bothering me, but now I'm fine with them for up to three hours.

Also, in terms of comfort with glasses, I find that it probably differs with what kind of glasses you have. I have glasses with straight temples (i.e. they don't curve down behind my ears), and as a result I have issues with comfort on pretty much all of my headphones, including the Beyer T1s and Denon D7000s. So in my opinion, Grados aren't necessarily worse with glasses than any other headphones.

Depending on your budget, you might look into a pair of headphones from Lawton Audio, the cheapest being the LA2000 Lites. I have a pair with the Silky Oak wood cups, and to me they almost sound like a smoother, bass-ier version of my SR60is. They have the same kind of agressive, forward midrange that sounds great with rock music (especially high-distortion electric guitar), but with added bass extension, quantity, and articulation. They also sound smoother, without the "graininess" that I get with my SR60is.

Edit: oh yeah, and you can get the LA2000 Lites balanced quite easily too.

 

[Bilavideo]

I tried the Sennheiser pads and found them to work very well. They are softer and more comfortable. The quarter mod brings out more of the HF.

Hearing good things about the flats, I bought a pair for $35, then cut the inner ring, widening the aperture to improve the HF. The flats do a great job with bass, but give a muddier presentation unless they're modded. I found my "moment of zen" when I took the bottom layer from a pair of bowls and superglued them to the tops of my flats. This gave me more space, but because the bottom layer of the bowls is firmer, it preserved that wonderful bass. So, I got the best of both worlds - terrific bass with plenty of HF extension and no muddiness.

An added benefit of this arrangement was the transition from on-ear phones to circumaural cushions. There was enough space to let my ears reside inside the cushions, which put the pressure on my cranium rather than my earlobes. The difference in comfort is hard to miss.

 

[XLR1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjinh /img/forum/go_quote.gif +1, that's what I do with my grados

I agree. My RS2is are very confortable with 414 pads. If after a few hours my glasses bother my ears, I pull the pads a little low so that the tops of my ears holding the glasses are above the pads.

 

[AudioNovice]

I wore Grados with comfy pads for awhile, so let me explain the "discomfort" thing, because it's not exactly what you'd think from what you read on here.

Any Grado/Alessandro with the stock "comfies" (flat pads) are "on-ear" (supra-aural). They are not "over-ear" (circumaural). You wear glasses, and I typically do, too, late at night when I'm wearing my phones the most.

The problem (for me) isn't necessarily the Grados themselves, but the nature of all on-ear headphones combined with glasses. All on-ear headphones are "uncomfortable" for me, because they press your ears against your head and the arms of your glasses get mashed into the crevice of your ear, which definitely causes discomfort over time.

That was the *only* discomfort I experienced with Grados, and that isn't exactly fair to Grado because all ear-phones of that design, not just Grado, are uncomfortable in that regard (if you wear glasses). When I wore contacts instead of my glasses, my comfort level improved by a ton, and the amount of time I would be able to wear them increased many hours without any noticeable discomfort. Ya, after 4-5 hours, they might start to hurt the ears a bit. Still... that's 4-5 hours. Probly need to get up and stretch/move about by that time anyway, lol.

To resolve this problem, I purchased the Alessandro MS1 instead of the SR80s (comparable in price), so that I could do the MS1000 "mod" (for an additional $85 US), which completely eliminates any discomfort whatsoever. They are the most comfortable headphones I've owned, and they still have that "Grado sound" (they sound even better, tbo). I can wear the MS1000s indefinitely... I wear them on average of about 10-12 hours a day, and my ears *never* hurt, there is no discomfort whatsoever.

The MS1000 mod replaces the flat "comfy" pads which are on-ear with the GS1000 pads which are over-ear. Makes a huge difference.

So if you have an extra bit of cash, you might spring for that project instead (fun project, too).

 

[lazure]

You could be surprised. I had apprehensions about Grado discomfort and found them to be fine. I'm presently A/Bing a pair of Grado SR-225i and Sennheiser HD-600s, and to my surprise, I like the Grados best for comfort...so what I would do is order them from a retailer (like Headroom) that has a good return policy, and try them on for yourself...